Thursday, June 3, 2010

M14 Scope

Some of you pay attention. You notice that every now and then I contemplate an optics system to go with my M1A.

But an M1A is not the most conducive to optics mounts.

So I lean for a fore rail ahead of the receiver and some sort of red dot scope. If I wanted to, I could swap off the Leupold Scout scope with its 16 inches of eye relief from where it now sits on the Garand.

But I am intirgued by ACOG and other Trijicon type sighting systems. Particularly the Accupoint. Why? The tritium illumination of the reticle and the fiber optic assist of same give these a good reputation in low light. And 4x magnification is more than enough for me. If I want to shoot 800 yards away I'll get 10x+. But, these Trijicon scopes have much shorter eye relief distances, and all the receiver mounts on the M14s out there are less than ideal.

Well maybe not this one. From Basset Machine. It's supposed to return to zero better than other options, and it has clearance for the iron sights to co-witness. Another data point for me to consider.

That mount isn't TOO expensive, either. I don't have to buy the $1000 scope now...

10 comments:

One problem I had putting a scope on my M1A was that the bell of the scope's front optic blocked the iron sights.

Another challenge I had was trying to use an aluminum mount on a hard-recoiling rifle. No matter how hard I tightened it, the mount always shot loose. I went with the steel Smith Enterprise mount and that solved the problem, but they're pricey.

But then I decided that a scope on a semi-auto battle rifle wasn't the right choice for me, so I went back to iron sights.

I've been using a B-Square no-drill mount to hold a fixed 10x on a Garand. With the target knob carefully positioned to avoid unsightly brass marks, it seems to holding up better than I am. Or holding it up-I'm tempted to start drilling holes in everything. Rides like a Cadillac, and for similar reasons.

I've been looking at the trijicon 1x4 accupoint, heard lots of good thing bout them, the 1x looks f'n great and maybe an spr larue mount to push it back towards the eye. the 1x4 has a constant 3" eye relief through all powers which I like. $775 just seems a little steep....

The Rapid Reticle is an interesting idea, providing hold-over for ranges and with 2.5 knot wind ticks. Although marked to 800, there is a simple technique for hold-overs to 1050. When ranges are known, but targets may pop up anywhere, the Rapid Reticle facilitate rapid accurate fire.

I put one on a Smith Enterprises Mount and another on a Sadlak mount, one variable and one fixed. Compared side by side with our old mil-dots, there is less to think about. These are truly rapid and more fun. Iron sites or scopes - My son and I cannot stop shooting these! (Your own mileage and/or expected scenarios may vary).

Rapid Reticle simplifies the fire control problem, but a separate system for range determination is needed. A laser range finder (lasers point both ways) can be used. Pre-sketched range cards of terrain/landmarks can be prepared in advance. Or a spotter with a mil-dot scope can work on target detection/ID and ranging. Long range shooting is normally a two man task. The Rapid Reticle supports accurate fire for engagements at quickly changing ranges, making the weapon more effective.

Good Advice

"You never select a shotgun as your primary anti-zombie firearm. It's great for onesy twosey, but zombies travel in hordes. The reload time is onerous, and the ammo, while effective, is heavy and bulky and short ranged."

About Me

Preamble

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.